Improved Targeting and Safety of Doxorubicin through a Novel Albumin Binding Prodrug Approach.

Human serum albumin (HSA) improves the pharmacokinetic profile of drugs attached to it, making it an attractive carrier with proven clinical success. In our previous studies, we have shown that Caveolin-1 (Cav-1) and caveolae-mediated endocytosis play important roles in the uptake of HSA and albumin-bound drugs. Doxorubicin is an FDA-approved chemotherapeutic agent that is effective against multiple cancers, but its clinical applicability has been hampered by its high toxicity levels.

Different microbial communities in paddy soils under organic and nonorganic farming.

Organic agriculture is a farming method that provides healthy food and is friendly to the environment, and it is developing rapidly worldwide. This study compared microbial communities in organic farming (Or) paddy fields to those in nonorganic farming (Nr) paddy fields based on 16S rDNA sequencing and analysis. The predominant microorganisms in both soils were Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Nitrospirota.

Iron Fertilization Can Enhance the Mass Production of Copepod, , for Fish Aquaculture.

Copepods are proven nutritious food sources for the mariculture/larviculture industry, however, unreliable methods for mass production of copepods are a major bottleneck. In this study, we modified a previously reported inorganic fertilization method (N: 700 μg L and P: 100 μg L) by the addition of iron (Fe: 10 μg L, using FeSO·7HO) (+Fe treatment) and compared its suitability for copepod culture () to the original method (control). The experiment was conducted outdoors in 1000 L tanks for 15 days.

Functional Prediction of Microbial Communities in Sediment Microbial Fuel Cells.

Sediment microbial fuel cells (MFCs) were developed in which the complex substrates present in the sediment could be oxidized by microbes for electron production. In this study, the functional prediction of microbial communities of anode-associated soils in sediment MFCs was investigated based on 16S rRNA genes. Four computational approaches, including BugBase, Functional Annotation of Prokaryotic Taxa (FAPROTAX), the Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States (PICRUSt2), and Tax4Fun2, were applied.

Antitumor Activity of Anti-miR-21 Delivered through Lipid Nanoparticles.

The ability of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to deliver nucleic acids have shown a great therapeutic potential to treat a variety of diseases. Here, an optimized formulation of QTsome lipid nanoparticles (QTPlus) is utilized to deliver an anti-miR-21 (AM21) against cancer. The miR-21 downstream gene regulation and antitumor activity is evaluated using mouse and human cancer cells and macrophages.

Evolution of Nanometer-Scale Microstructure within Grains and in the Intergranular Region in Thermoelectric Mg(Sb, Bi) Alloys.

n-type MgSb-MgBi alloys have been investigated as one of the most promising thermoelectric materials. To achieve high performance, a detailed understanding of the microstructure is required. Although MgSb-MgBi is usually considered to be a complete solid solution, nanosized compositional fluctuations were observed within a matrix and in the vicinity of the grain boundary.

Ivermectin Enhanced Antitumor Activity of Resiquimod in a Co-Loaded Squalene Emulsion.

Immunogenic cell death (ICD) plays an important role in sensitizing tumor cells to antigen-presenting cells followed by antitumor immunity. However, a successful antitumor response by ICD requires both apoptotic tumor microenvironments and activated immune systems. Ivermectin (IVM) has been shown to induce cell apoptosis through autophagy which can be a great candidate for ICD therapy.

AZD5153, a Bivalent BRD4 Inhibitor, Suppresses Hepatocarcinogenesis by Altering BRD4 Chromosomal Landscape and Modulating the Transcriptome of HCC Cells.

BRD4, a chromatin modifier frequently upregulated in a variety of neoplasms including hepatocellular cancer (HCC), promotes cancer cell growth by activating oncogenes through its interaction with acetylated histone tails of nucleosomes. Here, we determined the anti-HCC efficacy of AZD5153, a potent bivalent BRD4 inhibitor, and elucidated its underlying molecular mechanism of action. AZD5153 treatment inhibited HCC cell proliferation, clonogenic survival and induced apoptosis in HCC cells.

Modification of Lipid-Based Nanoparticles: An Efficient Delivery System for Nucleic Acid-Based Immunotherapy.

Lipid-based nanoparticles (LBNPs) are biocompatible and biodegradable vesicles that are considered to be one of the most efficient drug delivery platforms. Due to the prominent advantages, such as long circulation time, slow drug release, reduced toxicity, high transfection efficiency, and endosomal escape capacity, such synthetic nanoparticles have been widely used for carrying genetic therapeutics, particularly nucleic acids that can be applied in the treatment for various diseases, including congenital diseases, cancers, virus infections, and chronic inflammations. Despite great merits and multiple successful applications, many extracellular and intracellular barriers remain and greatly impair delivery efficacy and therapeutic outcomes.

CpG Oligodeoxynucleotides for Anticancer Monotherapy from Preclinical Stages to Clinical Trials.

CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG ODNs), the artificial versions of unmethylated CpG motifs that were originally discovered in bacterial DNA, are demonstrated not only as potent immunoadjuvants but also as anticancer agents by triggering toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) activation in immune cells. TLR9 activation triggered by CpG ODN has been shown to activate plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), enhancing T cell-mediated antitumor immunity. However, the extent of antitumor immunity carried by TLR agonists has not been optimized individually or in combinations with cancer vaccines, resulting in a decreased preference for TLR agonists as adjuvants in clinical trials.

A Squalene-Based Nanoemulsion for Therapeutic Delivery of Resiquimod.

Agonists for toll-like receptors (TLRs) have shown promising activities against cancer. In the present study, a squalene-based nanoemulsion (NE) was loaded with resiquimod, a TLR7/8 agonist for therapeutic delivery. R848 NE was developed and characterized for long-term stability.

Dynamic Changes in Soil Microbial Communities with Glucose Enrichment in Sediment Microbial Fuel Cells.

Unlabelled: To investigate soil microbial community dynamics in sediment microbial fuel cells (MFCs), this study applied nonhydric (D) and hydric (S) soils to single-chamber and mediator-free MFCs. Glucose was also used to enrich microorganisms in the soils. The voltage outputs of both the D and S sediment MFCs increased over time but differed from each other.

A novel protein-drug conjugate, SSH20, demonstrates significant efficacy in caveolin-1-expressing tumors.

In recent years, human serum albumin (HSA) has been characterized as an ideal drug carrier in the cancer arena. Caveolin-1 (Cav-1) has been established as the principal structural protein of caveolae and, thus, critical for caveolae-mediated endocytosis. Cav-1 has been shown to be overexpressed in cancers of the lung and pancreas, among others.

Isolation of endophytic fungi with antimicrobial activity from medicinal plant Zanthoxylum simulans Hance.

Fungal endophytes have been found to exist in many plant species and appear to be important to their plant hosts. However, the diversity and biological activities of these fungi remain largely unknown. Zanthoxylum simulans Hance, a popular natural spice and medicinal plant, commonly known as Szechuan pepper or Chinese-pepper, grows on Kinmen Island, Taiwan.

Metallic n-Type Mg Sb Single Crystals Demonstrate the Absence of Ionized Impurity Scattering and Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance.

Mg (Sb,Bi) alloys have recently been discovered as a competitive alternative to the state-of-the-art n-type Bi (Te,Se) thermoelectric alloys. Previous theoretical studies predict that single crystals Mg (Sb,Bi) can exhibit higher thermoelectric performance near room temperature by eliminating grain boundary resistance. However, the intrinsic Mg defect chemistry makes it challenging to grow n-type Mg (Sb,Bi) single crystals.

Improvement of Low-Temperature zT in a Mg Sb -Mg Bi Solid Solution via Mg-Vapor Annealing.

Materials with high zT over a wide temperature range are essential for thermoelectric applications. n-Type Mg Sb -based compounds have been shown to achieve high zT at 700 K, but their performance at low temperatures (<500 K) is compromised due to their highly resistive grain boundaries. Syntheses and optimization processes to mitigate this grain-boundary effect has been limited due to loss of Mg, which hinders a sample's n-type dopability.

The effect of paclobutrazol on soil bacterial composition across three consecutive flowering stages of mung bean.

Paclobutrazol, (2RS, 3RS)-1-(4-chlorophenyl)-4, 4-dimethyl-2-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl) pentan-3-ol, is a plant growth retardant that mainly inhibits gibberellins (GAs) biosynthesis. In agricultural practice, paclobutrazol is applied to arrest vegetative growth so as to increase the reproductive growth of many orchard fruit, as well as grain crops. However, due to its over-application and chemical stability, paclobutrazol accumulates in soil and inhibits the growth of subsequent crops, especially those grown for vegetative purposes.

A new drug design strategy: Killing drug resistant bacteria by deactivating their hypothetical genes.

Despite that a bacterial genome is complicated by large numbers of horizontally transferred (HT) genes and function unknown hypothetical (FUN) genes, the Genic-Transcriptional-Stop-Signals-Ratio (TSSR) of a genome shows that HT and FUN genes are complementary to all other genes in the genome. When HT or certain FUN genes are omitted from the Escherichia coli K-12 genome, its Genomic-TSSR value becomes totally incomparable to other E. coli strains.

Seasonal changes in bacterial communities associated with healthy and diseased Porites coral in southern Taiwan.

We compared the bacterial communities associated with healthy scleractinian coral Porites sp. with those associated with coral infected with pink spot syndrome harvested during summer and winter from waters off the coast of southern Taiwan. Members of the bacterial community associated with the coral were characterized by means of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of a short region of the 16S rRNA gene and clone library analysis.

Impact of a Pediatric Dermatology Service on Emergency Department Utilization for Children with Dermatitis.

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is the most common chronic pediatric skin disease, and it can profoundly affect a family's quality of life. Children with flaring AD often seek treatment in emergency departments (EDs), which leads to expensive care and ineffective long-term disease control.

Objectives: The objective of the current study was to determine the effect of a pediatric dermatology service (PDS) on ED use and charges and of disease outcomes for patients diagnosed with AD before and after establishing an intramural PDS.

Anti-inflammatory effects of secondary metabolites of marine Pseudomonas sp. in human neutrophils are through inhibiting P38 MAPK, JNK, and calcium pathways.

Activated neutrophils play a significant role in the pathogenesis of many inflammatory diseases. The metabolites of marine microorganisms are increasingly employed as sources for developing new drugs; however, very few marine drugs have been studied in human neutrophils. Herein, we showed that secondary metabolites of marine Pseudomonas sp.

The effect of Mn(II) on the autoinducing growth inhibition factor in Deinococcus radiodurans.

Decreases in cell division at the stationary phase in bacterial cultures are often due to the depletion of nutrients and/or accumulation of toxic waste products. Yet, during the stationary phase, the highly radiation-resistant bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans undergoes new rounds of cell division when Mn(II) is added to the medium in a phenomenon known as manganese-induced cell division (MnCD). When cells were cultured in medium without Mn(II)-enrichment, a heat-resistant, proteinase K-resistant factor (or factors) with a molecular mass less than 10 kD accumulated in the spent medium.

Picoplankton dynamics and picoeukaryote diversity in a hyper-eutrophic subtropical lagoon.

Picoplankton (cells with a diameter of 0.2-3.0 μm) is the dominant contributor to both primary production and biomass in the ocean.